If I have given back evil to him who did evil to me, or have taken anything from him who was against me without cause;

The Lord was looking down from heaven on the children of men, to see if there were any who had wisdom, searching after God.

Then trouble and shock came on the earth; and the bases of the mountains were moved and shaking, because he was angry.

The heavens were bent, so that he might come down; and it was dark under his feet.

He made the dark his secret place; his tent round him was the dark waters and thick clouds of the skies.

The Lord made thunder in the heavens, and the voice of the Highest was sounding out: a rain of ice and fire.

They came on me in the day of my trouble; but the Lord was my support.

He took me out into a wide place; he was my saviour because he had delight in me.

And I was upright before him, and I kept myself from sin.

By your help I have made a way through the wall which was shutting me in; by the help of my God I have gone over a wall.

They were crying out, but there was no one to come to their help: even to the Lord, but he gave them no answer.

But it was you who took care of me from the day of my birth: you gave me faith even from my mother's breasts.

I was in your hands even before my birth; you are my God from the time when I was in my mother's body.

Do not keep in mind my sins when I was young, or my wrongdoing: let your memory of me be full of mercy, O Lord, because of your righteousness.

Even if an army came against me with its tents, my heart would have no fear: if war was made on me, my faith would not be moved.

False statements against me have come to my ears; fear was on every side: they were talking together against me, designing to take away my life.

For the weight of your hand was on me day and night; my body became dry like the earth in summer. (Selah.)

For he gave the word, and it was done; by his order it was fixed for ever.

I was searching for the Lord, and he gave ear to my voice, and made me free from all my fears.

But as for me, when they were ill I put on the clothing of sorrow: I went without food and was sad, and my prayer came back again to my heart.

My behaviour was as if it had been my friend or my brother: I was bent low in grief like one whose mother is dead.

Like men of deceit they put me to shame; the voice of their wrath was loud against me.

But he came to an end, and there was no sign of him; I made a search for him and he was not there.

I made no sound, I said no word, even of good; and I was moved with sorrow.

My heart was burning in my breast; while I was deep in thought the fire was lighted; then I said with my tongue,

I was quiet, and kept my mouth shut; because you had done it.

When I was waiting quietly for the Lord, his heart was turned to me, and he gave ear to my cry.

For they did not make the land theirs by their swords, and it was not their arms which kept them safe; but your right hand, and your arm, and the light of your face, because you had pleasure in them.

Truly, I was formed in evil, and in sin did my mother give me birth.

God was looking down from heaven on the children of men, to see if there were any who had wisdom, searching after God.

They were in great fear, where there was no cause for fear: for the bones of those who make war on you have been broken by God; you have put them to shame, because God has no desire for them.

For it was not my hater who said evil of me; that would have been no grief to me; it was not one outside the number of my friends who made himself strong against me, or I would have kept myself from him in a secret place;

But it was you, my equal, my guide, my well-loved friend.

He has taken my soul away from the attack which was made against me, and given it peace; for great numbers were against me.

The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart; his words were softer than oil, but they were sharp swords.

The sea was turned into dry land: they went through the river on foot: there did we have joy in him.

Keeping the word which came from my lips, and which my mouth said, when I was in trouble.

My voice went up to him, and I was lifted up from the underworld.

The earth was shaking and the heavens were streaming, because God was present; even Sinai itself was moved before God, the God of Israel.

Those whose resting-place was there, even the poor, were comforted by your good things, O God.

When the Most High put the kings to flight, it was as white as snow in Salmon.

To him who goes or the clouds of heaven, the heaven which was from earliest times; he sends out his voice of power.

You have seen my shame, how I was laughed at and made low; my haters are all before you.

My heart is broken by bitter words, I am full of grief; I made a search for some to have pity on me, but there was no one; I had no comforter.

For you are my hope, O Lord God; I have had faith in you from the time when I was young.

O God, you have been my teacher from the time when I was young; and I have been talking of your works of wonder even till now.

But as for me, my feet had almost gone from under me; I was near to slipping;

When my thoughts were turned to see the reason of this, it was a weariness in my eyes;

You put their feet where there was danger of slipping, so that they go down into destruction.

My heart was made bitter, and I was pained by the bite of grief:

As for me, I was foolish, and without knowledge; I was like a beast before you.

The sea was parted in two by your strength; the heads of the great sea-beasts were broken.

I was crying to God with my voice; even to God with my voice, and he gave ear to me.

In the day of my trouble, my heart was turned to the Lord: my hand was stretched out in the night without resting; my soul would not be comforted.

The waters saw you, O God; the waters saw you, they were in fear: even the deep was troubled.

The voice of your thunder went rolling on; the world was flaming with the light of the storm; the earth was shaking.

Your way was in the sea, and your road in the great waters; there was no knowledge of your footsteps.

And not be like their fathers, a stiff-necked and uncontrolled generation; a generation whose heart was hard, whose spirit was not true to God.

The sea was cut in two so that they might go through; the waters were massed together on this side and on that.

In the daytime he was guiding them in the cloud, and all through the night with a light of fire.

See, the rock was cut open by his power, so that the water came rushing out, and overflowing streams; is he able to give us bread? is he able to get meat for his people?

So these things came to the Lord's ears, and he was angry; and a fire was lighted against Jacob, and wrath came up against Israel;

But they were not turned from their desires; and while the food was still in their mouths,

In the memory that God was their Rock, and the Most High God their saviour.

Ice was rained down on their cattle; thunderstorms sent destruction among the flocks.

And he was their guide to his holy land, even to the mountain, which his right hand had made his;

When this came to God's ears he was very angry, and gave up Israel completely;

He gave his people up to the sword, and was angry with his heritage.

Then was the Lord like one awaking from sleep, and like a strong man crying out because of wine.

Even to the tree which was planted by your right hand, and to the branch which you made strong for yourself.

I have been troubled and in fear of death from the time when I was young; your wrath is hard on me, and I have no strength.

Rahab was crushed by you like one wounded to death; with your strong arm you put to flight all your haters.

The sea is his, and he made it; and the dry land was formed by his hands.

For forty years I was angry with this generation, and said, They are a people whose hearts are turned away from me, for they have no knowledge of my ways;

Zion gave ear and was glad; and the daughters of Judah were full of joy, because of your decisions, O Lord.

He sent a man before them, even Joseph, who was given as a servant for a price:

His feet were fixed in chains; his neck was put in iron bands;

Till the time when his word came true; he was tested by the word of the Lord.

Then Israel came into Egypt, and Jacob was living in the land of Ham.

Their land was full of frogs, even in the rooms of the king.

He took his people out with silver and gold: there was not one feeble person among them.

Egypt was glad when they went; for the fear of them had come down on them.

A cloud was stretched over them for a cover; and he sent fire to give light in the night.

But he was their saviour because of his name, so that men might see his great power.

By his word the Red Sea was made dry: and he took them through the deep waters as through the waste land.

But their memory of his works was short; not waiting to be guided by him,

And a fire was lighted among their tents; the sinners were burned up by the flames.

And their glory was changed into the image of an ox, whose food is grass.

And he was purposing to put an end to them if Moses, his special servant, had not gone up before him, between him and his people, turning back his wrath, to keep them from destruction.

They made God angry again at the waters of Meribah, so that Moses was troubled because of them;

And gave the blood of their sons and their daughters who had done no wrong, offering them to the images of Canaan; and the land was made unclean with blood.

Then the wrath of the Lord was burning against his people, and he was angry with his heritage.

Because he had no mercy, but was cruel to the low and the poor, designing the death of the broken-hearted.

When Israel came out of Egypt, the children of Jacob from a people whose language was strange to them;

The sea saw it, and went in flight; Jordan was turned back.

What was wrong with you, O sea, that you went in flight? O Jordan, that you were turned back?

But our God is in heaven: he has done whatever was pleasing to him.

The nets of death were round me, and the pains of the underworld had me in their grip; I was full of trouble and sorrow.

The Lord keeps the simple; I was made low, and he was my saviour.

I have been hard pushed by you, so that I might have a fall: but the Lord was my helper.